Combined clothesline support and rope washer



Jan. 19, 1932. s. MAZZELLA 1,842,278

COMBINED GLOTHESLINE SUPPORT AND ROPE WASHER Filed May l. 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet Jan. 19, 1932. s. MAZZELLA 1,842,273

COMBINED CLOTHESLINE SUPPORT AND ROPE WASHER Filed May 1. 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 19, 1932 PATENT oF rcE SALVATORE MAZZELLA, F PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY COMBINED CLOTHESLIN E SUPPORT AND ROPE WASHER Application filed May 1,

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in a combined clothes line support and rope washer.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a combined clothes line support and rope washer wherein a box or casing housing a guide pulley for a clothes line rope also 1neludes rotatable brush elements with which oneof the runs of the rope moves between and a" water compartment at the upper end of the casing having a screened or perforated outlet disposed above the rotary brushes for delivering fine sprays of water onto the brushes for cleaning the rope.

5 a A further object of the invention is to pro vide a device of the foregoing character wherein means is provided for extracting excess moisture from the rope and is engaged with the run of the rope that moves outi wardly of the casing.

Figure 1 is a top planvlew of a combined structed in accordance with the present invention, showing the exteriorly positioned operating mechanism forthe rope cleaning brushes and the guide pulley for the rope; Figure 2 is a side elevational view showing the guide pulley for the extended end of the endless clothes line supported upon the bottom of the casing when the clothes line is out of use; a

Figure 3 is a front elevational View of the casing showing the entrance opening for one run of the clothes line rope with the interiorly positioned brushes engaged therewith and another opening spanned by a squeegee plate through which the outlet run of the clothes line rope passes; a,

Figure 4: is a horizontal sectionalview taken on line 4 lof Figure 3, showing the water compartment at the upper end of the clothes linesupport and rope washer con- 1931. Serial No. 534,335.

casing with the plug closure for the outlet thereof;

v Figure 5 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view taken on line 55 of Figure 1 showing the upper water compartment in the casing, the guide pulley for the clothes line, the cleaning brushes disposed beneath the outlet for the water compartment and the device for extracting excess moisture from the clothes line i Figure 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line 66 of Figure 2;

Figure 7 is a detail sectional view showing a modified construction of water outlet for the water compartment;

Figure 8 is a detail sectional view showing a modified form of means for extracting ex cess moisture from the clothes line rope; and

Figure 9' is a detail sectional view taken on line 99 of Figure 8.

The combined clothes line support and rope washer comprises a casing having side walls 1 and 2, front and rear walls 3 and 4, a bottom wall 5 and a top wall 6 hinged to the upper edge of theside wall 1 as at 7 and retained in closed position by the fastening device 8. The casing carries brackets 9 to facilitate mounting thereof upon a support 10.

The casing is divided by ahorizontal partition 11 providing an upper compartment 12 constituting a water receptacle and a lower compartment 13 that houses the clothes line feeding and rope washing mechanism and as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the upper face 14 of the partition 11 inclines toward an outlet 15 that is closed by a removable plug16 and is surrounded by a depending externally threaded outlet tube 17 upon which a domeshaped perforated cap 18 isthreaded. The compartment 12 is filled with water or cleaning fluid for the clothes line rope and when the closure plug 16 is removed, the water flows through the outlet 15 and guide tube 17 to percolate through the perforated cap 18 upon brushes disposed beneath the same and between which brushes a run of a clothes line rope passes.

A modified construction of outlet for water from the compartment 12 to the compartment 13 is shown in Figure 7, the outlet 15a of the partition wall 11a being internally threaded for the reception of a longitudinally slotted screw closure plug 1.6a which by adjustment regulates the quantity of water flowing through the opening 15a to percolate through the cap 18.

A guide pulley 19 within the compartment 13 is keyed upon the shaft 20 journalled in the side walls 1 and 2 of the casing, one end of the shaft 20 projecting from the casing and carrying an operating crank handle 21. A pair of rotary brush members 22 and 23 have the core bearings 24 and 25 thereof journalled in the side walls 1 and 2 of the casing in superposed relation with the ends of the bearings 24 and 25 projecting through the side wall 2 of the casing. The shaft 25 has a sprocket wheel 26 fixed thereto aligned with a sprocket wheel 27 upon the guide pulley shaft 20 and said sprocket wheels 26 and 27 are traversed by a sprocket chain 28. A gear wheel 29 fixed to the outer terminal end of the shaft 25 meshes with the gear wheel 30 upon the corresponding end of the brush shaft 24 so that when the guide pulley shaft 20 is rotated by the crank handle 21, rotation is imparted to the rotary brush elements 22 and 23.

The front wall 3 of the casing has a door section 31 hinged thereto as at 32 with the free swinging edge thereof carrying a fastening device 33 for retaining the door in closed position. superposed openings 34 and 35 formed therein, the upper opening being aligned with the contacting peripheral surfaces of the brush elements 22 and 23 so that the upper runs of the clothes line rope 36 is directed between the brush elements in its passage over the guide pulley 19. The outlet run of the clothes line 36 passes through the opening 35 and over a guide roller 37 ournalled in the opening 35, the inner side of the opening 35 being spanned by an elastic plate 38 having a central opening therein for the lower run of the clothes line and operating to extract excess moisture from the clothes line rope. To maintain tracking engagement of the clothes line rope with the guide pulley 19, the rear wall 4 of the casing has a cut away portion in which a plate 39 is set with an arcuate guide rib 40 carried by the inner face of the plate 39 which is concentric to and adjacent the guide pulley 19. The outer end of the endless clothes line 36 travels over a pulley 41 journalled in a holder 42 that may be attached to a convenient support and when the clothes line is out of use, the holder 42 may be sus pended upon the hook 43 carried by the bottom wall 5 of the casing. As shown in Fig ure 5, the bottom wall 5 of the casing is inclined as at 44 toward an outlet drain 45. It is also intended that a bucket 43a be suspended from the book 43 to lie beneath the The door section 31 has a pair of drain 45 when the clothes line is being washed.

In lieu of the elastic plate 38 illustrated in Figure 5 for the extraction of excess fluid from the clothes line rope, the device illustrated in Figures 8 and 9 may be employed and include a pressing device including a fixed shoe 46 and a cooperating pivoted shoe 47 mounted upon the pin 48 and having a lateral projection 49 engaged by the screw 50 for moving the shoe 47 in a direction toward the shoe 46, the clothes line rope 36 passing between the two shoes 46 and 47 as illustrated for the purposes stated.

From the above detail description of the invention, it is believed that the construction and operation thereof will at once be ap-' parent and while there are herein shown and described the preferred embodiments of the present invention, it is nevertheless to be un derstood that minor changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

I claim 1. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope pass-es in contact and said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes.

2. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact and said partition having a screened opening for spraying Water onto the brushes,

and a guide pulley in the lower compartment for the inner end of the endless clothes line rope.

3. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, and means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line.

4. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes Jon in contact said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, and a guide pulley in the lower compartment for the inner end of the endless clothes line rope, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, and means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line.

5. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of t e runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alinedwith the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, and means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line, including an elastic plate having an opening therein through which the outlet run passes.

6. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compart ment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact, said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, and a guide pulley in the lower compartment for the inner end of the endless clothes line rope, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, and mean a in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line, including an elastic plate having an opening therein through which the out et run passes 7. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartmentbetween which the rope passes in contact saidpartition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, the front walloi' the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, and means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line, including a pair of presser shoes through which V the outlet run passes.

' 8. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, and a guide pulley in the lower compartment for the inner end of the endless clothes line rope, the front wall of the casing havinga pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, and means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line.

9. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes inthe lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line, including a pair of presser shoes through which the outlet run passes, and means for moving one'presser shoe toward the otherone.

10. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having a partition therein forming an upper water compartment and a lower rope cleaning compartment, rope cleaning brushes in the lower compartment between which the rope passes in contact said partition having a screened opening for spraying water onto the brushes, and a guide pulley in the lower compartment for the inner end of the endless clothes line rope, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the passage of the runs of the clothes line, one of the openings being alined with the meeting edges of the cleaning brushes, means in the other opening for extracting excess water from the outlet run of the clothes line, and

means for moving one presser shoe toward theother one.

11. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having an upper water compartment and a lower compartment, a pair of superposed rotary brushes journalled in the lower compartment between which a run of a clothes line passes, a guide pulley in the lower compartment over which the line passes, a guide rib adjacent the pulley to maintain tracking of the line over thep ulley, means for spraying water from the upper compartment onto the brushes and driving 'connections between the brushes and pulley.

12. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having an upper water compartment and a lower compartment, a pair of superposed rotary brushes journalled in the lower compartment between which a run of a clothes line passes, a guide pulley in the lower compartment over which the line passes, a guide rib adjacent the pulley to maintain tracking of the line over the pulley, means for spraying water from the upper compartment onto the brushes and driving connections between the brushes and pulley,

the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the runs of the clothes line.

13. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having an upper water compartment and a lower compartment, a pair of superposed rotary brush-es journalled in the lower compartment between which a run of a clothes line passes, a guide pulley in the lower compartment over which the line passes, a guide rib'adjacent the pulley to maintain tracking of the line over the pulley, means for spraying water from the upper compartment onto the brushes and driving connections between the brushes and pulley, the front wall of the casing having a pair of superposed openings therein for the runs 0]": the clothes line, and means in one of said openings for extracting excess water from a run of the line.

14. In a device for use with an endless clothes line, a casing having an upper Water compartment and a lower compartment, a pair of superposed rotary brushes ournalled in the lower compartment between which a run of a clothes line passes, a guide pulley in the lower compartment over which the line passes, a guide rib adjacent the pulley to maintain tracking of the line over the pulley, means for spraying water from the upper compartment onto the brushes and driving connections between the brushes and pulley, the spraying means including a grooved screw adjustable to vary the feed of water.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

SALVATORE MAZZELLA. 

